Category Archives: Inspiration

Inspiration: Clueless

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Nothing says “grace, poise, and timeless beauty” quite like the cinematic jewel that is the 1995 film, Clueless.  Never before and never since has there been such a stellar example of the meaning of the word “chic.”  If they were alive today, I know that Audrey Hepburn herself would bow to the genius of Alicia Silverstone’s seminal performance, and Coco Chanel would redesign her signature suit.

How can you argue with the bright beauty of this ensemble  (and although you can’t see it in this photograph, but the sweater is fuzzy… Fuzzy!  Genius!):

Or what about the understated grace of this outfit:

Or the classic use of color and pattern in these two?  Just stunning!:

 Want to make some of your own Clueless inspired fashion?  Break out your fun fur and try these:

Uptown, Downtown Cardigan, by Lion Brand Yarn40001ada_medium

#20 Fur Collared Jacket by Charlotte Quiggle 738_1_

Inspiration: The Hobbit

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Have you seen the Hobbit yet?  Probably.  It seems like everyone and their mother has seen it.  It was pretty good, but I have a couple gripes with it.

  1. Why do all the dwarves look like dwarves, except for two who look like some sort of perfume models?  Can you find them?
  2. Why did the dwarves randomly sing two big song and dance numbers at the beginning of the movie, then NEVER SING AGAIN?  I’m not saying I want the Hobbit to be a musical, but two musical numbers out of nowhere is a little weird.
  3. Why is Frodo in the beginning?  Dumb.  No point in him being there.
  4. Why is it a trilogy that will end up lasting more than 9 hours?  That’s too much.  It’s not a long book.

But one thing I did notice (because I’m a weirdo who likes knitting way too much), is that many of the characters wear these fantastic knitted fingerless mitts:

Mittens 3Mittens 2Mittens 1

Gorgeous!  Warm!  Practical!  Exactly what you want to wear when going on an adventure.  Want some for yourself?  Try these patterns:

Commuter Fingerless Mitts by Stephanie Sun

Camp Out Fingerless Mittens by tante ehm

Inspiration: McDonald’s Fish Commercial

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This is possibly the worst commercial ever made:

But, I’ve seen it about a thousand times, since they have been playing it over and over again on Hulu.  It might be a terrible commercial, it has a pretty great sweater in it.  It’s a fairly standard fair isle sweater in cream and grays, but it’s knit extra-long and a little bit fitted, which makes it much more modern than the fair isle sweaters you’ve probably seen in the back of your parent’s closets.

Want to make something similar?  Try these:

North Shore by tincanknitsIMG_0213

Guirnalda by Varian Brandon2013L-1_medium2

116-43 Jumper with raglan sleeves and multi coloured pattern in ”Karisma Superwash” by DROPS design43-1

Inspiration: Call the Midwife

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Have you watched this show?  Holy crap, it’s so good!  It’s one of these BBC costume dramas that show up on PBS sometimes.  Beautiful costumes and sets, great characters, compelling stories. Look for it. Watch it. It’ll make you cry. Every. Episode.

It really should be called “Call the Midwife: Why You Should Never Get Pregnant.”  Seriously, nothing ends well.  Actually, that’s not true.  Most things end well, but they are very scary, gross, and/or painful in the middle.

But, really, the stars of the show are the fantastic hand-knits the babies are all wrapped up in.  Look at these!

Gorgeous, right?

Feeling inspired?  Have a friend who’s expecting?  Considering a career in midwifery? Try these patterns for a similar result:

Baby Cardigan/Shrug by Julia Noskova

Saartje’s Bootees by Saartje de Bruijn

Lullaby Layette by Lion Brand Yarn

Not Quite Banksy

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I am a goody-two-shoes.  I kind of hate that about me, but I also am terrified of getting in trouble… always have been.  I’m sure a lot of you guys are, too.  After all, you’re reading a knitting blog, not out committing felonies and doing drugs.

But, sometimes I get fed up playing by the rules, and I want to do something a little bit rebellious.  Not enough rebellious that I go to jail, or hurt anyone,  or cause any permanent damage, or really bother anyone much, or anything.  Just enough to give me a little excitement.  So, as someone weirdly obsessed with knitting, what am I to do?  Knitted graffiti.

If you’ve spent any time online looking at knitting-type things, you might have heard about this.  Knitted graffiti or yarn bombing basically means making knitted decorations for something in a public space that you may or may not be supposed to be messing with.

Yarn bombing can be something as small as knitting a little heart and leaving it on the bus for someone to find, to entirely covering a tree with a knitted tree-cozy.  We had a great big statue at my college when I was in undergrad.  I crocheted it a striped hat and matching scarf when I was a junior.  I thought she looked pretty snazzy.  (I was going to put a picture of it here, but I can’t for the life of me find it.  This makes me a little sad.  Here’s a monster parking meter that I found instead.)

Want to give it a go?  Do it!  It’s pretty much the best way to get an adrenaline rush while knitting.  True, knitting isn’t exactly a high-octane pastime, but still.

Inspiration: Top Chef

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Say what you will about reality TV, but sometimes even on dumb TV shows you get good knitting inspiration.  A couple weeks ago (I think… I’m woefully behind on my TV watching), on Top Chef, the contestants went on a cruise, and during the QuickFire Challenge judge Curtis Stone wore this sweater:

Good, right?  Even my husband pointed it out.  Either my obsessive eagle-like searching for knitting has rubbed off on him, or this is a pretty cool sweater.

It’s a fairly simple cardigan with set-in sleeves and a shawl collar. The twist comes with the texture of the knitting.  The collar is not just knit plain, but in fact consists of great big cables.  The body is (I think) worked in seed stitch.  If you wanted to make something similar, try modifying these patterns:

Brownstone by Jared Flood

Charcoal Ribbed Cardigan by Kate Kuckro

Gramps Cardigan by Kate Oates

Inspiration: Downton Abbey

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I hate Downton Abbey.  Also, I love Downton Abbey.  It’s so awful and so great.  I know you guys are totally into it too.  It’s such a soap opera, but they have fancy British accents and it’s on PBS, so it makes you think that you’re watching something smart.  And then you get all attached to the characters, and then BAM! Spanish flu.  BAM! Eclampsia.  BAM! Car accident.  It messes with my brain.

The one real problem I have with the show, however, is its lack of hand knits.  For real!  The costumes are all so gorgeous and richly textured and (one assumes) historically accurate.  How can there be no knitting?   Maybe knitting was out of vogue with the richie-rich of the early 20th century.

DOWNTON_ABBEY_EP3_57

Even if the Grantham sisters don’t really wear any knitting, you can still make some Downton-inspired knitting projects:

Aeolian Shawl by Elizabeth Freeman

Annis by Susanna IC

Old Town by Carol Sunday